


Sometimes It’s Good To Fail

by lezzerlee



Series: AELDWS Round 6 [2]
Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Community: inceptiversary, First Meetings, M/M, Tutoring, aeldws
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-10
Updated: 2014-08-10
Packaged: 2018-02-12 13:27:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2111601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lezzerlee/pseuds/lezzerlee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A first failure, a first meeting. Arthur is failing a class in college, he needs a tutor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sometimes It’s Good To Fail

**Author's Note:**

> **Genre:** high school/college AU  
>  **Prompt:** first  
>  **Word count:** up to 400 words
> 
> Thanks so much to [riverlight](http://t.co/ILcCLkXwBo) for the beta!

Arthur fidgets as he wraps his fingers around his warm ceramic cup, observing other cafe patrons: students mostly, some young professionals on laptops. There's an attractive man sketching in the corner who catches his eye. He's got beautiful, full lips, and short-cropped, sandy, blond hair. Arthur thinks about moving to sit closer, but he's waiting for his tutor, so he ignores his libido and focuses, with a scowl, on the people arriving.

Sinking despair is not a feeling Arthur’s accustomed to. Then again, he's never had a failing grade before. He's never had less than a B before. College is full of unexpected obstacles, namely his required art class and the fact that you can, in fact, fail at drawing. Hiring a tutor seemed like the only option when his teacher had posted grades and Arthur had seen the stark, black-and-white lettered F aligned with his student ID number.

Arthur glares at his hands, the traitors, and wonders why he can't make them produce what he sees in his head. When he glances around again, he catches the man in the corner looking at him, and smirks when the man doesn’t look away. Instead, the man starts to sketch again, glancing down and up in rapid succession, as if Arthur’s smile was what he was waiting for all along.

Arthur pulls his phone out of his pocket to check the time and finds that there is still a minute or two before the tutor is late. Being on time is one of Arthur’s rules; being early is better. He sighs, and sinks back into his chair. After another minute he looks around the coffee shop again. The man in the corner is gone and Arthur twists, searching hopefully to see if he just went to the counter, or if he really has left. Arthur wanted to hit on him if his tutor bailed.

"Arthur, right?" an English accent says right behind him. Arthur flinches but doesn't jump. When he turns around the man from the corner is leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, t-shirt pulled tight across his chest and arms. From this close Arthur can see the black edges of tattoos sticking out from underneath his sleeves.

"Uh, yeah," Arthur says, throat dry.

The man's smile is brilliant. "Good to meet you, I'm Eames, your tutor."


End file.
